With the chaotic Gameweek 10 still fresh in the memory, it’s time to look forward (with all fingers and toes crossed) to Gameweek 11 and forget about what was a pretty rough week for many an FPL manager, myself included.

Southampton vs Aston Villa

The opening match of the gameweek falls later on this evening and takes us to St Mary’s as Southampton take on the misfiring Villans. I’d be tempted to just say ‘play Livramento’ and leave it at that but that wouldn’t be much of a preview now would it!? It’s getting progressively harder and harder to bench the young Englishman, so do so at your peril. Aside from Tino, the Saints have a few players that are starting to hit some form or look like potential ‘maverick’ candidates for the coming weeks.

For Villa, there aren’t too many options pushing themselves to the front of the queue and demanding we pick them. However, keep an eye on Ollie Watkins. His underlying stats for the last few matches are fairly strong and ranks fairly well for touches in the box and goal attempts in the last couple. For his price point, he could be a decent option if you need to reduce funds in your front line.

Up front, the pairing of Adams and Armstrong are players that are being furiously added to FPL manager watchlists given their strong upcoming fixtures (Liverpool and Arsenal aside). Personally, I’m looking at bringing in Armstrong to my side for Vardy to allow me the funds to bring in Son for Gameweek 12 onwards, especially now Conte has taken the reigns at Spurs. Broja is also an option but a word of warning, it’s going to be hard to call who plays out of the three. One to watch certainly.

Prediction – Southampton 1: 1 Aston Villa (Armstrong and Watkins to score)

Manchester United vs Manchester City

Saturday lunchtime’s match brings us, without a shadow of a doubt, the biggest game of the weekend; Manchester Utd vs Manchester City. While Utd cruised past a lacklustre Spurs last weekend, the Citizens struggled to break down a resolute Crystal Palace side at home and succumbed to a 2-0 defeat, with Laporte being sent off to add to their woes. As we all know, derbies can be completely random and form can fall by the wayside.

It’s hard to say who you should be looking to sign from City. I went to the Crystal Palace game and just can’t get past how bad they were. I have absolutely no idea whether that was just a one-off or a sign of things to come. There were only two players that I feel did anything noteworthy in that game and they were Foden and Bernardo Silva. The young Englishman worked incredibly hard and was very unfortunate not to have an assist. Silva was continually available for the ball and if players like Grealish had been more accurate with their passes, he would have been in some very dangerous positions. Moving forward, the only City players I’d be looking at are the two aforementioned midfielders and Jesus. There’s no point in me suggesting defenders as the vast majority of managers have at least one anyway! But if you had to push me, it would be remiss of me not to suggest Cancelo or Dias.

As for United, the win against Tottenham could just be a flash in the pan. They looked poor against Atalanta on Tuesday and were only saved by two Ronaldo goals; one of which came out of absolutely nothing. Being incredibly blunt, there are no players I’m even remotely considering from United. Cavani’s underlying stats look very strong but the poor guy barely starts so it’s not worth FPL managers bringing him in. Maybe take another look at United players in a few weeks when the fixtures swing.

Prediction – Manchester United 1: 3 Manchester City (Ronaldo, Gundogan, Jesus and Foden)

Brentford vs Norwich

Brentford play Norwich this week and have some very strong fixtures in the next few weeks, so it’s hardly surprising that a lot of FPL managers are jumping on Toney and Mbeumo. I’ve had Toney since the start of the season and with the fixtures they’ve got, he’s going nowhere in my team. Now that Mbeumo is back fit again, he is also a very strong option for FPL managers wanting a cheap 4th or 5th midfielder that they can rely on to play week in, week out. Despite recently not looking great at the back, Brentford were performing well defensively for a fair while, so if you’re after a cheap defender to replace injured players in your team, you could do worse than looking at someone like Pinnock.

I’m not even going to bother suggesting anyone from Norwich. Simply, avoid.

Prediction – Brentford 2: 0 Norwich (Toney and Mbuemo)

Chelsea vs Burnley

Chelsea take on Burnley at Stamford Bridge in Gameweek 11 and are top of the league for a reason. They look so strong right now and in addition to being ridiculously tight at the back, they’re looking dangerous offensively too, even without Lukaku. Many FPL managers brought in Havertz as soon as Lukaku and Werner were ruled out through injury but he’s flattered to deceive so far. However, he could still be a very good option. If Mount is back fit again, he is also a very reasonably priced way into that Chelsea attack but he may be one to avoid in the short term unless he’s guaranteed to be back for this week.

The biggest decision for FPL managers is which defensive player to have, or even which two. Many of us have Azpilicueta but have been punished for keeping faith with the Spaniard as he’s been dropped/rested and watched on from the bench as James and Chilwell have bagged huge numbers of points. Should you keep him or join the bandwagons? Personally, I’m giving him this gameweek but if he’s benched again, I’ll grit my teeth and transfer him out for either of the Englishmen in Gameweek 12. As for your teams, the decision has to rest with you sadly as you’ll have to live with your decision either way, especially if the player you bring in for him then gets benched themselves (which is possible).

I’m not going to be as harsh on Burnley as I was Norwich, because they are poles apart, but just like the Canaries, there isn’t anyone I’d like from the Clarets. They don’t score enough goals and don’t keep too many clean sheets either. If you had to push me, I’d suggest Cornet but there are many better options for similar prices really.

Prediction – Chelsea 3: 0 Burnley (Havertz, Mount and Chilwell)

Crystal Palace vs Wolves

As I mentioned earlier, Palace looked very resolute and very dangerous at the Etihad on Saturday and were well worth their victory. Although they looked strong at the back, I wouldn’t be looking at defenders from them for the time being. Although, that being said, if there was ever a time to jump on Mitchell, now would be the time as he did look very promising against City last week and their fixtures do swing for the better.

It was at the other end that I was very impressed though. Edouard held the ball up very well and linked up well with Gallagher and Zaha, who both looked sharp and could even have scored more FPL points had certain passes been slightly better. With slightly better fixtures in their future, Vieira getting the best out of the entire team offensively right now and very reasonable pricing for all three aforementioned players, Palace could be well worth keeping an eye on over the next few gameweeks and there could be some great punts available if you don’t already have any of them.

If you want cheap strikers under £8m, you really should be looking at either of the Wolves pair, Jimenez or Hwang. They have great upcoming fixtures and are linking up very well. Although Jimenez was gifted his goal at the weekend and Hwang blanked, they both looked incredibly dangerous against Everton and could have scored more points than they did. They’re so reasonably priced that they should not be overlooked. Aside from the attack, Ait-Nouri could be a viable option in defence. He looked very threatening offensively and given that Wolves have the ability to keep it tight at the back, he could be well worth a punt. Even if Marcal is back fit, there’s no guarantee that he’ll go straight back into the team given the form of the young Frenchman.

Prediction – Crystal Palace 2: 1 Wolves (Edouard, Zaha and Hwang)

Brighton vs Newcastle

The Seagulls have looked very tight at the back this season and are where they are in the league table for a reason. I’m backing them to keep a clean sheet this weekend so anyone playing Sanchez or one of the defenders should (hopefully) be fairly confident in some good points. Now that Lamptey is back fit, he could well be someone that will need to be looked at, especially with their strong fixtures moving forward. Other than the young Englishman, there’s not much else that’s particularly appealing in that side, unless you want to do a one week punt for Maupay, who historically does well against Newcastle.

As for the Magpies, it’s hard to really suggest any of their players right now. They’re looking very disjointed, and have done since Bruce was sacked (if not even before that). The attacking players aren’t really getting the service or much help from the midfield, so as much as I like Wilson and Saint-Maximin, I can’t say with any confidence that they will score many points in the upcoming gameweeks. I might be wrong, and I hope for all Geordies’ sake that I am, but I just can’t see it sadly.

Prediction – Brighton 1: 0 Newcastle (Maupay)

Arsenal vs Watford

Sunday’s first televised game takes us to the Emirates, where Arsenal are taking on Watford. The Gunners have been firing recently and are now unbeaten in their last 7 league games, winning 5 and drawing 2. The likes of Lacazette, Aubameyang, Saka and Smith-Rowe have all scored decent FPL points in the last few and I don’t see that stopping against Watford, who have conceded the most chances recently. The two young midfielders are very cheap and affordable ways into that Arsenal attack and are both seemingly pretty nailed too. Aubameyang is probably a risk but that’s only because of his price so if you can handle spending that amount of money on a striker for your team, there are certainly worse options. Lacazette offers a cheaper alternative but his minutes could be under threat now that Odegaard is back fit.

In regards to Watford, while they looked promising against Everton, you can also attribute that to just how bad defensively the Toffees were. Josh King is a very cheap option for your attack, so if you need to find some funds, he could be an option but aside from him, there aren’t too many other Hornets players that I’m even remotely tempted by. I do think that Watford could nick a goal against Arsenal but I don’t think any of their players are really worth a punt right now. Maybe give Ranieri a couple more weeks to sort the team out and then if they’re firing more regularly and consistently, maybe reconsider.

Prediction – Arsenal 2: 1 Watford (Aubameyang, Lacazette and King)

Everton vs Tottenham

While I will be heavily focusing on Tottenham given recent events, I’m hopeful for a resurgence in form for the Toffees, although I don’t expect that to happen this week. Perhaps when Calvert-Lewin is back, they might look more of a threat but not quite yet. 

However, when they changed their formation for the second half against Wolves, they looked much more threatening, so cheaper midfield options like Gray and Townsend aren’t the worst options if you need cheap alternatives that are guaranteed to play. Given how awful Spurs looked defensively against Vitesse, it really wouldn’t surprise me if Everton nicked one goal against them.

All eyes will be on Tottenham this week, thanks to the exciting appointment of Antonio Conte, with many wondering just how the change in management will affect Spurs’ FPL prospects. It’s only been one game but it certainly looks promising for Son and Kane following the 3-2 win against Vitesse. Son, especially, looked very dangerous and was playing very far forward and could have had more than his one goal. A lot of people are already flocking to bring in either the South Korean or the England captain and it’s certainly something I will be keeping an eye on. 

Prediction – Everton 1: 2 Tottenham (Gray, Moura and Son to score)

Leeds vs Leicester

I would be absolutely amazed if this game was to end 0-0 given that both teams seem incapable of defending currently. There’s not too much to say about Leeds at the moment; with Bamford still out injured and their defence looking leggy and fairly wayward, the options for FPL are pretty limited, aside from the obvious Raphinha. He unsurprisingly looked incredibly dangerous against Wolves and there’s no reason why that won’t continue against Leicester.

As for the Foxes, we’ve all been duped by Vardy in recent weeks. Many FPL managers brought in the Englishman when Lukaku was ruled out (myself included) but he’s flattered to deceive so far. With Leicester looking a little off colour right now, is it worth moving him on? Yes, he could score against a poor Leeds defence but I can’t see much more for him in the following gameweeks. Aside from Vardy, it’s hard to be tempted by any of his team-mates. While Maddison has been back creating chances of late, his form always fluctuates and is one of the most frustrating players to own. Tielemans always looks bright but from an FPL perspective, bright doesn’t always score points.

Prediction – Leeds 1: 1 Leicester (Raphinha and Vardy to score)

West Ham vs Liverpool

The Hammers are firing right now and it goes to show just how unfortunate David Moyes was to lose his job when in the hotseat at Old Trafford. I haven’t owned Antonio all season and that will change at some point but given West Ham’s upcoming fixtures, that won’t be soon. I still think he could score against Liverpool this weekend though. Liverpool aren’t the most compact at the back right now and his physicality and pace could pose them a threat in Sunday’s game. Antonio aside, the only other players that could be a possibility (if you really wanted a punt) are Benrahma, who’s been fairly consistent most of the season so far, and Jarrod Bowen.

There’s nowhere else to begin than with Mo Salah. He’s the world’s best player right now, simply based on his outstanding performances week in, week out. If you’re not captaining him, you’ve got more courage than me! With Firmino now ruled out for a few weeks with yet another hamstring injury, Jota could well be in a lot of managers’ teams in the coming weeks. He looks good right now and is attempting as many shots as the Egyptian so could be a great pick moving forward. While I think Liverpool could well concede against West Ham, I certainly wouldn’t be advising benching Trent or Robertson if you have them. 

Prediction – West Ham 1: 3 Liverpool (Antonio, Salah and Mane to score)